


Thanksgiving Blues

by illyrilex



Category: King of Fighters
Genre: Family Issues, Friendship goals, Gen, Slice of Life, Thanksgiving, Totally platonic lady bro soulmates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-26
Updated: 2020-11-26
Packaged: 2021-03-10 07:54:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,986
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27719849
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/illyrilex/pseuds/illyrilex
Summary: One-shot: Once again, King's Thanksgiving veers in a decidedly memorable direction.
Kudos: 2





	Thanksgiving Blues

**Author's Note:**

> You know, I've done a Thanksgiving piece for two years running, and I really didn't think I'd do one this year, but then this happened. Special thanks to David Tai for providing some excellent material to work with and jojoDO for cheering me on!
> 
> Let's goooooo~!

* * *

King never liked Thanksgiving. It was something she didn't really understand: an American holiday where the masses gave thanks to their "Lord" by eating. Of course, she knew that it was rooted in history: Native Americans, European settlers, blah blah blah. Nevertheless, it wasn't exactly a Thing in France, so when her parents decided to celebrate it for reasons unknown to her to this day, it confused her even more. Then, her mom died, and her dad basically said "to hell with it." And that was that.

It wasn't until she moved in with her aunt and uncle in America that Thanksgiving celebrations came back into her life. Her Aunt Maddy was, for all intents and purposes, an American. So she did American things — such as celebrate Thanksgiving with her husband, Gary. And if _they_ celebrated, that meant Cécile and Jean would as well.

Because, when in Rome...

Sometimes Maddy and Gary had guests over: co-workers or very good friends, which made the occasion even weirder for King because, not only did she have to proclaim how thankful she was for her family, or shelter, or whatever else she was expected to attribute to some higher being that she didn't even believe in, but she had to be on her best behaviour while doing it. Her best behaviour that was never good enough for Maddy or Gary…

Somewhere along the line it became something of a tradition for a nasty fight to break out between King and her aunt and uncle. The three had never gotten along because she simply wasn't like them: she wasn't ultra conservative; she didn't want to grow up to be some obedient baby factory for some well-off man. No… King was the very antithesis of everything Maddy and Gary expected and believed in. The only thing the trio had in common was their love for her baby brother, Jean. If it hadn't been for him, King would have completely severed ties with the contemptuous pair years ago…

So it was no surprise that the last Thanksgiving King spent with her family was an unmitigated disaster: the usual fighting had broken out, but it was so bad that even Jean had gotten involved to some degree and ended up grounded that weekend because of it.

King's therapist (and, of course, common sense) told her not to see her family for the holidays anymore, which was fine with her; she had no problem _not_ celebrating the baffling occasion. Jean was a little disappointed, but he understood King's reasoning for staying away the following year… which led to Thanksgiving with the Sakazakis and Robert Garcia.

King was friends with all of them (hell, she had even crushed on Ryo for a while) so she didn't think that spending the holiday with them would be horrible by any stretch of the imagination… until it was. Ryo confronted her about one of her many secrets, and everything went to hell. The night culminated in yelling, crying, and a car accident that resulted in two cracked ribs and a _severe_ laceration on her right knee that needed several stitches and left a permanent scar.

But, now, finally — finally! — King was going to get what she wanted: to spend the day at home, with her cat and a glass of wine. No contrived "what are you thankful for"s, no stressful trip to Costco for a pumpkin pie, no being offered dry turkey even though she didn't eat meat! It should have been great… but it just… wasn't. There was still a deadly pandemic out there, which meant that people weren't gathering for the occasion. There was something about being unable to spend time with her friends or Jean even if she _wanted_ to that didn't sit right with her. Nevertheless, she decided she was going to make the best of it. She had Marron, FaceTime, and wine; she'd be okay.

…At least, that's what she kept telling herself as she poked holes in a microwaveable bag of vegetables. It felt a little strange not doing a _single_ thing for the holiday. With a frown King threw the veggies in the microwave. She punched in the time needed for the greens to steam properly before glancing over at Marron, who was sprawled across the dining room floor, licking one of his front paws, and suddenly wondered what she might have been doing had the country not been in such a state of diseased disarray. Would she have made an attempt to spend the day with Jean, playing games and generally having a good time before the fighting with Maddy and Gary started? Would Yuri have tried to get her to spend it with her family for a second year in a row? Maybe Mary would have invited her to hang out with Rock, Terry, and her future inlaws — Andy and Mai. They were all friends; it probably would have gone great.

Then again, with her track record, probably not…

King stared at Marron, who had finished bathing. He noticed her looking at him, let out a squeaky meow, and then rolled onto his back, showing her his tubby belly. She couldn't help breaking into a grin and rushing over to him. She situated herself on the floor so she could rub his stomach before moving her hand up to scratch his neck and chin.

"Who's my chubby little guy?" King asked. "You! You're my chubby little guy!"

As King gave attention to the cat she started thinking about when she first adopted him. She had walked into the shelter with Jean by her side, not really expecting anything; it was more of a recon trip than anything else. However, when Marron — then a kitten — sauntered up to the front of his cage and stuck his paw between the bars to pat her arm as she walked by she fell madly in love with him on the spot. Two years later, the brown tabby still seemed to love her, even if he was sort of a dick at times (as were _all_ cats). He was there, even when she was at her worst; never judged her— just cuddled up or bothered her for food. He was honestly the best.

But he wasn't human. He couldn't exactly talk back; he couldn't give her advice or tell jokes or share interesting stories— which was sort of what she found herself missing during this strange time. She hadn't seen anyone but Mary in person since the lockdown started, and, if those occasions hadn't been under extenuating circumstances, she probably wouldn't have seen her, either.

The timer on the microwave went off, prompting King to stop loving on Marron so she could get her food. She went back to the small kitchen, moved the hot bag to the counter, and started prepping her snack (which would, in all honesty, probably end up as dinner). Just as she started eating, the text chime on her phone went off. Curious as to who it was, she crossed the apartment so she could grab the device from the end table next to the sofa. She chuckled as she read the message, which was from Mary: an animated gif of a man dressed in short-shorts, rollerblading past, with text that read "Hey girl."

"What's up?" King hastily texted back.

Right away, _Killer Queen_ started playing: King propped the phone up against one arm of the sofa, sat down across from it, and then reached out to answer the FaceTime call.

"Just wanted to wish you a happy Turkey Day because I like you and I love you and I know how much you love this holiday," Mary said as soon as the video connected.  
"Well," King said, "I like you and I love you too."

There was a very brief lull while Mary put her own device up against what King assumed was the lamp on her desk at the station. She disappeared from the frame entirely before suddenly rolling backward on her work chair so that most of her body was visible.

"So you're not gonna wish me a happy Turkey Day?" The detective asked innocently.  
"Happy Turkey Day," King told her with a smirk.  
"Thank you!"

Mary reached over for something that was just offscreen; when her hands came back into the picture they were holding a flimsy paper plate, a plastic fork, and what looked to be dry turkey and instant mashed potatoes.

"Only the best for Southtown's Finest," she said. "It's not even turkey — it's a rotisserie chicken from Vons."  
" _That's_ your consolation prize for working the holiday?" King inquired, a huge frown on her face.  
"Well, that and the satisfaction of solving this case!"  
"You solved it?! It's done?!"  
"It is!" Mary beamed. "I arrested the bastard about an hour ago. I still have a mountain of paperwork to process, but it's another case closed!"  
"That's great," King exclaimed. "Now you can go see…"

She trailed off as she realized her error. Mary couldn't go see anyone, either, as her job put her at risk of catching COVID more than most. It was possible that she actually had it right that second and was asymptomatic. She grimaced before sticking her fork through a piece of broccoli.

"It's fine," Mary said nonchalantly. "No big deal."

King sighed.

"Did you at least get to talk to Terry today?"  
"Yeah, we had a nice, long chat before I went in," Mary answered coyly.  
"You mean you had phone sex," came King's matter-of-fact reply.  
"Gotta take it any way I can get it, bb."  
"Right. Got it."

The two women laughed, though Mary quickly stopped so she could flash King a devilish smile.

"Don't be jealous," she sang.  
"I'm not," King said bluntly.  
"Not even a little?"  
"Nope."  
"Why not?"

King gave Mary a pointed look before holding up her free hand and wiggling her fingers.

"Okay, but you need some real companionship," Mary laughed.  
"I have Marron. And wine."  
"You know there's a pussy joke just waiting to happen, right?"  
" _Mary_!"

King stared at her little screen, wide-eyed, while Mary giggled from her desk across town. She finally stopped so she could take a bite of her chicken, which looked seriously overcooked.

"Okay, okay," she said after she swallowed a sizable piece. "I won't mess with you anymore —"  
" _Merci_."  
" — but you have to promise me something."

King instantly sat up straighter. She put her vegetables to the side and then hesitantly leaned toward her phone.

"...What would that be?"  
"That, when this whole thing is over and we all get our vaccines and life gets back to normal… you'll… I dunno… at least _think_ about seeing someone…"  
"No thank you," King replied coolly.  
"Bb, you're all alone over there, and everyone one else has a squeeze… except you. Aren't you —"  
"Bothered? Not at all. I can do what I want when I want and I don't have to answer to anyone. It's great!"

Mary squinted at King before placing her dinner back on the desk.

"...What?" King asked carefully.  
"Nothing. I just worry about you sometimes."  
"Well, don't — I'm fine. Promise."  
"Okay…"

King made a face as she poked at some cauliflower, suddenly a little saddened by the prospect of having to eventually end the call.

"Hey," she said slowly. "Do you wanna come over?"

Mary did an epic double take.

"Did _you_ — the King of Quarantine — just ask me over to your overly sterile Fortress of Solitude?"  
"It's not solitude if I have my cat, and, yes, I did."  
"Okay, but —"  
"It's not like you haven't been here since the pandemic started," King pointed out  
"Well, yeah, but I just kinda dropped in on you. This time you're actually _inviting_ me over."  
"Do you want to come by or not?"

###

It wasn't even fifteen minutes later when King opened the door to let Mary into her apartment. The cop strolled in, removed her motorcycle helmet, and, with a wide smile, placed it down on the counter.

"The Chief is probably gonna yell at me for not finishing up my report but that's okay," she said brightly.  
"Are you sure?"  
"Of course! _You_ , my totally platonic lady bro, are much more important than a couple of signatures and initials."

King was about to respond but Weezer's _My Best Friend_ suddenly blared from her phone. She quickly turned to fetch the device while Mary continued to shed her outerwear.

"Jean!? Isn't it dinner time over there?" King asked her brother in place of a formal greeting.  
"Well, almost, but I had a great idea," the boy replied, his voice clear and enthusiastic.  
"What?"  
"Have dinner with us!"  
"I'm sorry, what? Jean, you _know_ that that's —"  
"No, I don't mean come over," Jean interrupted. "I mean, through, like… FaceTime. Or Zoom. I can set up my laptop or phone at the table, and you can have dinner with us! And if Maddy or Gary says something messed up all you have to do is hang up before any fighting begins! Everyone wins!"  
"'Everyone?'"  
"Well, maybe not Maddy and Gary, but they're not important," Jean went on. "But come on, please? I really wanna see you, Céc!"  
"Why not just call me after dinner?"  
"Because."  
"Oh. Because."

Mary walked over and peeked up at King.

"What's going on?"  
"Jean wants me to have a remote dinner with them," King explained while she put the call on speaker.  
"Ooh! You should!" Mary exclaimed.  
"What?!"  
"Come on! I'll be your Plus One!"  
"Céc? Who's there?"  
"It's Mary."  
"Hi, Jean!" Mary waved at the phone despite it being an audio-only call.  
"Hey Mary! So, Céc! Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaase?"

King pressed her lips together in a thin line and hung her head.

"I really don't know about this," she murmured.  
"Aww, come on, bb," Mary told her with a grin. "It'll be cool."  
"Yeah," Jean added. "Like I said, if someone says something messed up, we just end the call."

With a deep breath King walked over to the dining table and propped her phone up against the flower vase resting on the wooden surface.

"Do I have time to get some wine?"  
"Does that mean you'll do it?!"  
"...sure," King replied a little hesitantly.  
"YES!"

Mary and Jean shouted their glee in unison.

"Okay," Jean started, "I'm just gonna tell Maddy and Gary what we —"  
"Wait! They don't know?!" King exclaimed.  
"Well, I mean… no."  
"Jean!?"  
"Céc."

There was a lull in the conversation as King stood, mildly displeased with the turn of events. If Maddy and Gary didn't know about Jean's idea, then springing it on them at the last second was going to be a disaster at best…

"Jeanny Boy," Mary spoke up. "I've got her. Go tell your aunt and uncle what you need to, and then call us back. I'll make sure your big Céc gets plenty of wine. Cool?"  
"Cool! Talk soon!"

Three beeps indicated that the call was over.

"Mare?!"

King turned to Mary, who had sauntered into the small kitchen and was rummaging through the refrigerator.

"Don't make that face," the other woman called. "You spent Thanksgiving with Jean every year — until last. Here's a chance to do it again, but from the comfort of your own home! If your trash aunt or uncle say something, hang up — no harm, no foul."  
"This is a bad idea," King declared. "They already don't like me as it is, but when they see you they'll —"  
"Yeah, yeah — they'll think we're girlfriends or friends with benefits or whatever," Mary dictated. "But none of that matters because _Jean_ wants you to be there. Let him have this."  
"...Fine," King said grudgingly. She walked over to the kitchen, where Mary was pouring a very large glass of wine for her, and began rummaging through her cabinets.

"What are you looking for?"  
"I'm making you a drink."  
"But I need to drive later."  
"That's later. One drink isn't going to hurt you, and you'll probably need it anyway if you're dealing with _them._ "

And, so, King and Mary spent the next few minutes preparing for Jean's call, with Mary carefully taking the wine to the dining table, and King mixing a special cocktail for her friend. The phone started to ring almost the second she finished.

"Come come come," Mary called while gesturing with her hand.  
"Yes, yes, yes," King sighed. She placed the blue cocktail on the table, sat down, and reached out to accept the call while Mary pulled a seat up.

"Hey, Céc," Jean said happily from somewhere offscreen. "I'm just… setting… this up…"

The picture became very blurry while Jean worked to adjust the camera. When it finally settled down, King made a face. Jean was perfectly visible… but so were their aunt and uncle.

"Cécile," came a curt pseudo-greeting from Aunt Maddy.  
" _Auntie_ ," King drawled, fully aware that Maddy _hated_ it when she called her that.  
"Hello, Cécile," came Gary's acknowledgment.  
"Gary."  
"Is somebody there with you? Who is that I see?" The older man asked while moving to get a better look at Jean's screen.

"It's Mary," King started, "You've me —"  
"HI!"

Mary cut in with a sing-song cadence while waving enthusiastically. Right away, Maddy's face went sour, and King instantly knew for certain that the older woman _definitely_ had the wrong idea. She hastily nudged Mary's ribs and subtly shook her head, which elicited a very wide grin.

"Mare," King mumbled under her breath.  
"How do you do?" Gary asked.

Mary turned to King and whispered, "Let's fuck with them."  
"Let's not…!"  
"I'm great!" Mary exclaimed. She slung an arm around King and grinned as she pulled her close. "Being here with my _darling_ King has made me feel so much better today! Especially since we can't spend it with our _lovely_ families."  
"I'm gonna stop you there," Gary said slowly. "We don't call her that here."  
"But I'm not there," King blurted.  
"That does not matter, Cécile," Maddy sighed while turning her attention to Mary. "Miss…"  
"Ryan."  
"Her name is _Mary_ ," King cut in.  
"We don't call Cécile by that silly nickname. I hope you'll respect that," Maddy stated curtly.  
"Of course," Mary told her politely. "It's just… she's so… _regal_ , you know? Besides. She likes it when I treat her like royalty. She just loves it when I handle her… crown _jewels_."

King's eyes went wide as she tried to shrug out of her friend's grasp to no avail; Mary had her in what felt like an actual death grip. Unable to really move, she chanced a look at her brother, whose eyes were lit up like Times Square on New Year's. It was clear that he was trying not to laugh.

"Okay, well, now that we're all here," Gary said, obviously doing his best to ignore Mary's statement, "why don't we —"

King groaned.

"— go around and say what we're thankful for? Why don't you start, Marylin?"  
"It's _Mary_ ," King corrected sharply, as she knew that her uncle got the name wrong on purpose.  
"It's okay, bb," Mary smiled. She cleared her throat and pulled King (who was still squirming) even closer than she already was.

"I'm so thankful for Céc," the cop beamed. "She's always been such a _special_ friend to me!"  
"Special _normal_ friend!" King added.  
"You two must be _very_ special… _friends_ ," Maddy began coldly. "If Cécile chose spending time with you during this crisis over spending time with her brother, then…"

King _felt_ her blood pressure start to rise. How dare this bitch insinuate that she was choosing between her friends and her brother like that?! She grabbed her wine and took a large gulp, willing herself not to get too pissed too fast.

"It's fine, Aunt Maddy," Jean spoke up quickly. "I know that Céc is staying away because she's trying to make sure I don't get sick."  
"It's nice that you're being so responsible, Cécile," Gary remarked, his tone a little dry.  
"What? I've always been responsible."

Maddy made a displeased "hmmm" sound as she took a sip of her own wine, her eyes locked on her niece through the small screen. King met her gaze, and the two glowered at one another for an uncomfortably long time while Jean and Gary discussed proper vegetable intake.

"You two aren't eating," Maddy observed after swallowing her drink, the expression on her face full of contempt. It was at that exact moment that King decided that she was going to go along with Mary; she was going to troll this woman and her husband. Hard.

"Mary and I already… _ate_ ," King spoke up. She gently tapped the other woman's foot with her own and shot her an amorous glance. "Didn't we, Mare?"  
"Oh, we did," Mary responded with a slow nod, her composure starting to crack just a little bit as laughter threatened to spill out. "Our royal _thighness_ was simply famished!"

Jean let out a loud noise, and King wasn't sure if it was because he was trying not to laugh, or because he was deeply embarrassed and/or disturbed by the visual his twelve-year old mind probably thought up in regards to that sentence. Regardless of what it was, he hastily grabbed his drink and started downing it very fast.

"Cécile."

Maddy's inflection was extremely caustic.

"Ouais, _Auntie_?"

There was silence as the two women glared at each other. King was certain that if she were there in person Maddy would have legitimately tried to wring her neck.

"Don't think I don't see what you're doing."  
"I'm not doing anything," King retorted sweetly. She had to keep from laughing, not because of Maddy, but because Mary had started to gently play with her hair.

"What's Céc doing?" Jean prodded. His delivery was innocent — _too_ innocent. There was no doubt in King's mind that he had caught on and was going along with it.  
"Nothing," Gary practically yelled, his face red.  
"Je suis trop gay pour eux," King informed her brother.  
"Cécile," Maddy exclaimed, scandalized. "Tu ne serez pas —"  
"Hey, Céc," Mary cooed, interrupting what would have been a very angry tirade. "Would you like to go get some _dessert_?"

King took a deep breath as she willed herself to keep her shit together.

"I… would _love_ some dessert," she proclaimed while doing her best to stay composed. She moved her face closer to Mary's and then flicked her eyes toward the other woman's lips before flashing a sideways glance at her aunt and uncle.

"Maybe we can start with some pie..."  
"I'd _love_ some pie," Mary said in an overly seductive tone. She turned in her seat so that she was facing King head-on, grabbed her face, and planted a kiss right on her lips, which was startling, but also hilarious. King broke into a fit of laughter that was stifled by Mary's lips, taking note of the strangled noise that came from her brother.

"Holy shit! Get it, Céc!"  
"Language!" Maddy yelled.

King pulled away and shot her aunt and uncle (who appeared like they were both on the verge of coronaries) a mischievous look.

"I'll call you later, Jean."  
"See you," Mary lilted. She reached out, ended the call, and started laughing so hard that she snorted. Meanwhile, King was doubled over in her seat, head on the table, giggling hysterically.

"You cheeky bitch," she gasped.

The two women finally regained their composure, with King wiping a tear from her eye while Mary cleared her throat.

"So, what do you wanna do now?" She asked. "Netflix and chill?"  
"Netflix and chill… but in a totally platonic way," King answered.  
"Is that even a thing?"  
"It is now."  
"Whatever you say, your thighness."

King rose from her seat and took a very exaggerated bow (Mary smirked around her cocktail) before she brought herself upright to finish her wine. She then started toward the kitchen for another glass, thankful that she was finally having an _enjoyable_ Thanksgiving.

**Author's Note:**

> Did you like this? Let me know, but read the notes, first :)
> 
> * Aunt Maddy is French as hell, but she moved to America when she was younger, hence the line about her being an American.  
> * The drink King made is the Blue Mary  
> * "Je suis trop gay pour eux," = I'm being too gay for them. However, King is not a lesbian; she's bi as fuuuuuck.  
> * "Tu ne serez pas —" You will not —
> 
> You know what? I don't think I have anything more to add? Whaaat? Anyway, hope you enjoyed this, and, if you celebrate, have a happy Thanksgiving! Cheers~


End file.
